The latest release by Barry Douglas is a volume of piano works by Schubert, incorporating some very well known pieces of his compositional output, alongside other, lesser known pieces.
The ‘Piano Sonata in B flat’ is a quiet and reflective way to open the album, broadening out to becoming more majestic towards the end of the first movement then becoming withdrawn and full of stasis in the next. The third movement becomes full of life, and then finishes with another reflective movement. This is an interesting opening to Douglas’ album, and paves the way for piano playing which is both quiet and unassuming, moving towards an extrovert character in other parts of the album.
I am a huge fan of lieder: I love the style of having a piano and a voice which, to me, is such a simple way to experience music. I was excited to see that two lieder features on Douglas’ album. However, in this case, they are transcribed for solo piano by none other than Franz Liszt,. ‘Du bist die Ruh’ is a slow, moving piece of music which has a slight sentimentality to it which Douglas’ manages with great care, climbing up from the quietness to the grand crescendos and back again with careful consideration. The next, ‘Ungeduld’ focusses more on a quick tempo with a melody line which soars above the accompaniment in a playful way. Douglas pulls around with this a little, slowing down and speeding up again before the audience expects it, putting his stamp on a piece of music which has been beautifully transcribed by Liszt.
The last piece, ‘Fantasy in C major’ is a safe choice, and showcases one of Schubert’s favourite styles to write in: a fantasy. The album notes suggest that he was drawn to this form because the title was ‘non-prescriptive’ and because the form did not have to be prescribed such as with sonata form. Douglas’ playing throughout the whole fantasy conveys the wandering freedom of , drawing out the lyricism (especially in the second movement) and virtuosity. Every movement runs together flawlessly, and the listener has the sense of wandering in and out of various musical thoughts and moods with Douglas.
Overall this is a ‘nice’ album: it is not anything massively flamboyant and manages to showcase various aspects of Barry Douglas’ playing, without being too much of a ‘show-off’ about it.
Words: Emma Longmuir
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